


Keeping Score

by DeathHerself



Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: A lil spicy, Can’t keep their fraternising hands off each other, F/M, Flirting, Moss is a sweet lil warlock, Romance, Shaxx is a what now?, Shaxx is actually romantic when he wants to be, Slow Burn, a lil sweet, heavy teasing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-24
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-10-15 18:39:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17534105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeathHerself/pseuds/DeathHerself
Summary: This was their little game, every day she would find a new way to tease him, to try and catch the attention of the allusive Crucible Handler... Little did she know, she already had it. Shaxx has plenty of time for games, but he swears by match point he'll have her begging.Moss begs to differ.(Begins just before Destiny 2)  Some story some PWP... Guess I'll see how it rolls out





	1. One-Nil

It was their little joke.

 

Every day she would go to him, and blink up with those stunning emerald eyes as she took the bounties available to her, giving a seductive wink before she left and throwing just a little extra sway in her walk. Every day he would laugh good-naturedly at her, watching through his helmet as she left. Although, it did leave him curious. Every day saw the men and women of the crucible throw themselves over him, begging for attention, and every day he turned them down. Her, though, she made him curious, made him want to seek the attention he had gone without for so long. But she made him curious, made him want to get involved in this strange ritual she had started. 

 

****

“Moss.” She could hear her ghost calling to her, floating around and quietly whirring as he always did, but he should have known better -  she was always a late riser, even after the rows and rollickings from Zavala and Ikora, whilst Cayde sniggered on in the background. A barrage of ass-kickings following day after day, it was any wonder she was still a guardian, but as long as the Traveller looked favourably down on her, she would continue to lie in. Most mornings she would sit reading her datapad, checking out the stats for the previous days, putting notes in order and sorting out the to-do list that would never be stuck by anyway. Today was the single day off patrols this week, so she finally had the chance to organise the tired old apartment into something that looked vaguely like an actual home. Maybe even have some time just to sit and play games on the old console before returning to the grind the next day… with any luck, Cayde would be free too and they could go sit at the old ramen bar he loved so much. Fate is a cruel old bitch though, and as soon as she was dressed, there was a colossal banging, the shock sending me hurtling to the floor, rolling away just in time for a mirror to come off the wall, smashing into pieces where she had fallen.

 

Damn… that was her favourite piece.

 

“Guardian, front and centre.” Zavala's gravelly voice roared from outside. Eyebrows furrowed, and lips turned down into a scowl and mischief ruled her mind. When Zavala came to the door, it was usually serious, but she couldn't help to taunt him a little, especially given the rather rude circumstances of his visit. Standing amidst the shattered glass, she frowned at the shards and moved off towards the door. Opening it a crack and feigning a yawn whilst sparking the Light and sending a charge through the door. Sure enough, Zavala in his grumpy vanguard-leader ways put a hand to the door, ready to push it open. There was a minor twinge and the titan's muscles spasmed as the shock ran through him, but his face remained steady, as unimpressed as always. 

 

“Zavala!” he was met with a wide grin, “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Can it, guardian, apparently you have a crucible match today that's unmissable.”

 

Lips dropped, how could she have forgotten! Cayde had been just begging for an ass-whooping, well, not in those words of course, in fact, She quite think he fancied himself winning. In fun of course, but it was good training against the master Hunter, plus Cayde was like her cold, robotic brother. How couldn't you love him with his quirks… Well, Zavala couldn’t for a start, and although she could imagine the grin under his helmet, Shaxx pretended to be unimpressed. Secretly she thought he enjoyed watching the Exo and his skill with his notorious hand cannon, probably an enormous difference from the rookies who couldn’t aim a gun if their life depended on it. Perhaps he would relish the chance for a fight against the gunslinger, maybe even her. He had asked on occasion anyway, but every time, Moss had turned him away, too scared to go for it. Not to face the Titan, no, but to be face to face and in close quarters with him. Maybe she could just watch him and Cayde battle it out. Other guardians underestimated the ability in that glorified heavy pistol, but Moss had learned some tricks. Ikora had been joining in the jesting but - unbeknownst to Cayde - had been teaching in her spare time, helping control the ever rampant arc energy that raged through her veins. Cayde had no idea what was going to hit him. 

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she hoped Shaxx would be just as impressed with the skill shown. 

 

Stretching in armour and rolling stiff shoulders, a pleased sigh escaped her lips. Relief flooded through her muscles at the familiar weight of heavy warlock robes, flowing to ankles. Checking over the guns in her hands to ensure they were still in top condition. Vigilance Wing was a trusted friend, and Cayde would get a sweet taste of it soon. Hopefully. 

 

Boots clanked on the ground as she made her way through the tower, nodding to the faces she recognised, and giving warm smiles to the ones she didn’t. At some point along the way, Cayde met her, his metal face full of humour and jest as he jabbed her about her choice in clothing.

“Man my golden gun ain’t got nothing on your dress, Moss. I’m going to need to kill you for the insult to my eyes, safety first, really?”

“Ohhhh what you gonna do tough guy? Stab me with your horn?”

 

Flicking a finger at the protrusion, they both laughed as he leapt away, covering his head with one hand and pointing his gun at her with the other, a horrified expression on his face. All she could do was laugh at her Exo buddy, life wasn’t boring with him anyway. 

 

The sights of the city fell away from them as they stepped down towards Shaxx’ abode, his stall in the corridor seemed as formidable as always, the hefty skulls decorating the walls, the red banners streaming down. But it was never that which caught her eyes first. Instead, her gaze was drawn to the shimmering dented armour, the two-tone helmet with its singular arched horn. From under the helm, she could feel the heavy weight of his gaze, giving him a wink. Only when she received a light-hearted elbow from Cayde did she realise it had not been as subtle as she had thought, 

“Phew, I can feel some of the tension boiling over here…” he raised an eye plate, “do I need to give you some time alone.” 

“Cayde! It’s a professional relationship!” huffing, blood racing to her cheeks, face heating up as they approached the Titan, squaring her shoulders and striding towards him, ensuring a thorough eye-fuck that shoved Cayde’s smugness right down his glowing throat. Although it could have been a trick of her eyes, she was sure the massive Titan had shifted ever so slightly, his shoulders squaring. 

“Guardian.” His simple word was taunting. Staring him down, Moss felt a Cheshire Cat grin spread across her face, blanking out the embarrassment from earlier. 

“We have a private slot?” Her voice thankfully held steady,  but the damage was done and she would never hear the end of this from the damned hunter breathing over her shoulder. 

 

It took minutes for them to be ready, then transmatted to the arena. They hadn’t picked anything special, just a single large field dotted with junk, as simple as possible where Shaxx could monitor, as well as it being down to pure skill rather than tricky environments (although Cayde had somewhat argued that using the crap lying around to set traps was skill - maybe to a hunter.) 

The first few heart thumping seconds went by as Cayde called the beginning of the match. Cayde… Calling the beginning of the match. Not Shaxx. 

 

“Sorry Moss! You kept denying the big guy his one on one,” there was an immature chuckle from the Exo, “He asked me a favour sooooo… Enjoy!”

 

She was going to fucking kill him when she got out of here. There was a goddamn good reason why she never agreed to the offers of facing Mister Crucible himself. Most of which started with a teenage crush and had escalated to blushing cheeks and a raw fire in her guts. Jumping his bones was not polite, so started their games. Giving him a saucy wink and making sure she sauntered off swinging her hips, hoping he would watch her as she left. Cheap tactics of course, but from the way he tasted around her now, she could say they were working. A sinister smile spread across her face, surely those same tactics would work here…

 

Stretching up and out, her robes flowed back, revealing the tight fitting under layers that gave her the manoeuvrability that warlocks desired, hers raised above her head, popping her shoulders, then cocking a hip to the side. 

 

Next thing she knew, Dink was pulling her back together again, minus the massive hole through her head. The little ghost hovered next to her ear, the loud booming laugh of the Crucible handler ringing through her helmet. 

 

“Nice try, Moss, the show is appreciated but not necessary, try harder.”

 

The bloody cheek of him. Cursing under her breath, she charged forward, throwing herself behind cover. For him to have reached her with a hand cannon, he would have had to have been close already. Tensing at every loud breath that could give her away, making sure to point an extra middle finger at the sky for Cayde to watch. How many parts could you remove from an Exo before their ghost couldn’t play jigsaw puzzle anymore?

 

That question went unanswered, but apparently “how much missing before Shaxx puts another bullet in your head?” Was about thirty seconds from resurrection.

 

With another whoosh of air and light, she was back, packing a headache that would make most cry. Dink whirred in her ear, giving her a good stern warning about not paying attention and the game head went on. It took seconds to locate Shaxx, and only slightly longer to put the big Titan down with a well-placed melee. The same again to use Vigis massive range to wipe him off the map and the game was on. They were both even, but Moss knew that Shaxx was holding back, he was much older - old enough to have seen the events that she had not yet been resurrected for - and much larger than she was, a simple melee from him would easily break bones or kill. But as much as she was enjoying herself, there was frustration at his holding back. Moss was not a delicate flower, she was a guardian - a lazy, small one - but a guardian nonetheless. 

 

It was about halfway through the match when her light felt complete. Lightning zipped through her veins and lit up behind her eyes, the green framed by the pulsating blue of her arc energy. Power filled her, her steps jolted the floor when her boots hit, but she could feel him. Intimately. Shaxx was a fountain of power, and like static they found each other, sparks flying as their light cautiously explored, tendrils of it coiling together and tasting. There was something very private about someone else light meeting your own, that person instantly had an insight into your very soul. Then came the crash and the field lit up. Heavy footfalls charged towards her, sending her heart thumping against her ribs, she just had to wait until the right time, and sure enough, here came Shaxx. His armour was glowing with the arc charge surrounding him, thundering towards her like a freight train. His shoulder dropped and Moss waited, and waited until she could feel the crackle on her skin, hair raisingly close. Her own light flared, scorching the ground beneath her as the warlock met the Titan head on. Shoulder met shoulder and Moss could feel her feet skidding across the ground, but the momentary tremor that she felt through the guardian next to her was well worth it the possible dislocation from the hit. Still, he pushed, digging feet in as hard as he could, the crackling growing and snarling around them, whilst Moss strained against the power and weight. Hopefully Cayde was getting a good show, she thought as another pulse of arc hit her hard, almost sending her to her knees. The power built, and with one final valiant push, exploded. Dust clouds blasted upwards, covering the field and the new crater in the map, along with the two guardians collapsed within it.    
  
Moss was the first to creak an eye, drained and exhausted, heart still pounding away. Beneath her was an equally erratic thumping, muffled by the heavy armour atop it. Not a second went by until she realised she had been thrown onto him in light of the massive arc bomb they had just set off. Warmth radiated from him, still breathing heavily yet thankfully not aware yet. Hell, she wanted to jump his bones enough without being caught straddling him, now  _ this, _ Cayde would never let her live down, in fact, he probably already had Sundance taking pictures to post about the tower. Nothing more scandalous than who the Crucible handler had his hands on. Last time Shaxx had touched a woman, it had been the talk of the tower for months, let alone having an unknown warlock straddling him in the crucible. Moss couldn’t believe her luck, and thank the traveller she wasn’t wearing her exotic gear that would be easily recognisable. 

 

Feeling the warm body underneath her begin to shift, she scooted away, wary of the clearing smoke and dust when a large hand grabbed her hip, fingers digging into the tender flesh where the armour didn’t quite cover. There was a firm squeeze before the hand fell away and he pretended to lay still once more. Clambering to her feet and tilting her head curiously at the Titan, who remained on the floor, but she could hear the quiet chuckling - so unlike his usual boisterous laughter - and his voice rang through her head, Dinky hovering by her shoulder.

 

“One-nil Warlock, but I won’t make it so easy next time.” 

 

Moss was looking  _ very _ forward to that. 


	2. Round Two

The biggest event of the year for sure was Holliday's gig in the hangar. For the week, any entrances and exits were sealed and the entire place there was darkness. The only light was the meagre glow from thousands of multicoloured fairy light speckled across the edges of the enormous room. Darkness reigned in the central mass of the room, which left the guardians encompassed and only those who chose to light themselves were known. Remaining in darkness was risky, but it left a certain… Eroticism. There was nothing sexier than meeting the lips of a fellow guardian, not knowing the next morning that it was that Titan who steamrolled you in the Crucible last week, or the Hunter who had run the Nightfall with you over and over.

Moss loved it, the electric, hair raising feeling of bodies all around you, brushing Light across each other as they danced, or kissed, or more if you were brave enough. A kiss here, a tempting graze of fingertips there and a zing of arc energy there and otherwise she just enjoyed the drinks and the atmosphere, leaving cold bodies on the floor to find some solar warmth. 

Patrols were ran during the day before, then the channels were switched to emergency only, for the single week of the year when the guardians could let loose. It wasn’t uncommon even to spot Zavala skulking on the outskirts in a well fitted suit, though his vanishing act halfway through tended to be big news. 

 

When she arrived, the crowd was jumping and the drink was already flowing. Manning the bar was a gorgeous female awoken with eyes like pitch, watching the dance floor with disinterest. Clearly not everybody enjoyed the festivities. 

 

“Titan-killer please,” Moss nodded to the barman, the awoken sauntering off into the pitch black, only a few feet away. Straining her eyes to the dance floor, there was a plethora of bodies, vaguely outlined by fairy lights and pulsating away perversely against the backdrop. Flashes of blue, flames catching between them, and even pulses of purple ruled the air. Some guardians had brightly lit necklaces, in various colours, casting shadows across their faces, others remained completely enshrouded by the darkness, only a glimpse here or there of what they could possibly look like. 

 

Slamming a neon blue drink down on the counter, the bartender took her glimmer and went back to watching the floor. Okay maybe she wasn’t irritated by the festivities, but wanted to join in? Wonder who she had pissed off the be put on the sidelines. No matter. 

 

Vodka strong and pungent burnt the back of her throat like a well aimed dawnblade, and with the rest of the mixture, she swore she could have breathed fire, but traveller be damned she wasn’t stepping out onto that floor again until she couldn’t see straight. Last time she was here, her more delicate sensibilities had ruined her night when she watched a… display of sorts in the middle of the floor, a tiny human woman stripping bare and rubbing herself all over an exodus undetermined gender. 

 

No, this time she would join in. Maybe not the stripping, but the atmosphere for sure. No more watching at the sidelines. Before she knew, another four, maybe five drinks had went down,

 

“Got a number, pretty lady?” An exo leaned across the bar next to her, head in his hands and blue optics gazing at her. The rejection was too quick before she took a second glance and lept to hug him. 

 

“Cayde! What you doing here?” 

 

“Playing truant. Ikora wanted me to watch the vanguard stuff, buuuut.” He downed the drink in front of him and pushed another towards her, winking at the bartender, “You know how much Zavala just  _ loves _ doing his job.”

 

Sure enough, Zavala could party like the rest of them, but his ‘honeymoon period’ to the guardian life and light was long over with. Some say he had been around since the collapse. So instead, Cayde more than made up for it. Turning to laugh at her Hunter buddy, Moss raised an eyebrow, he was already off grinding against some poor unsuspecting girl. Cayde was like that, loved his parties, loved his gun, also loved his girls. How did Exos… 

 

Shaking her head and just letting that thought drift off, Moss readjusted her dress and headed off. No armour tonight, only a thing lengths forest green dress, not that the colour would be noticeable in the pitch black. Now was her chance. Picking a target that seemed fairly easy to spot - of course she had a thing for big burly Titans - and he was massive. Coming in from his back, she ran a finger across his waist, noticing the delicious lack of shirt, as well as the thick muscle tensing under her touch. Turning to her, a hand settled around her waist, gripping tight enough that there was no escaping. Maybe it was her delirious tipsiness already, but she just couldn’t stop herself from leaning into the heat pouring from him, letting tiny jolts of arc energy spark, flowing into the Titan far easier than it normally would, returning tenfold and going straight down. Arms crept around his neck, running across what felt like thick fur before clasping behind his head, nearly on her toes to reach up. For such a massive brute, he was flexible and forward. Hips pulsated against hers, a hand coming down to her thigh to pull it around his hip until the only thing they were missing was his cock inside of her, although it was just as sexy. 

Lips met and the taste of him overpowered her, sparks shooting through her as his tongue sought and found entrance, dominating hers as they writhed in the mass of bodies. Heavy bass music thumped in the background and Moss could swear her heart followed it, pounding against her ribs as she was mouth fucked within an inch of her life, the Titans fingers strolling up her thigh and only briefly grazing the seam of leg and ass, before uttering a shocked expletive and removing said fingers. Almost immediately she felt cold, the heat of the body in front of her dragged away, and she was left licking the taste of him from her lips, hungry for more. It took a second to realise that it was not him that had been dragged into the crowd but her, another warlock grabbing her and attempting to pull her towards them, but the Titan was back, straight up lifting her off the other guardian like she weighed absolutely nothing. 

 

“That’s my warlock thanks,” he growled, the tone as threatening as any. Moss could have swore she knew that voice, it was so distinct, so deep and powerful. Could you fuck a voice? She’d definitely like to try…

 

“I’ll be your warlock all night with a voice like that.” She muttered, throwing herself toward the source and running her fingers through that thick rough fur mantle round his neck, tugging him towards the bar. No resistance met her and fingers laced through hers as they moved. In the light of the bar she could see slightly better, but still could only make out the rough darkness of tattoos covering him, a bright eye on one side watching her with interest, running up and down on her as she did with him. God he was sexy, built, converged in scars that she could just run her tongue over, well defined abs that she could… well, she could do a lot of things to those. A lot of positions needing a lot of strength. How would he look straining under her, fighting his orgasm as she rode him. The drinks were strong tonight for sure. 

Taking a swig of her Titan killer she dragged the other guardian down for another kiss, this time taking control, gripping the short hair and tugging whenever he made a move to lead. Teeth clinked as the kiss descended into aggressive, a firm grip on her ass as he growled into her mouth and she equally moaned into his, grasping as she was pulled flush against his boiling skin, flexing beneath her touch. She was losing her control, half ready to join to orgy in the dance floor and ride him through the ground.

 

“Moss,” he moaned through gritted teeth, pulling back ever so slightly and leaving her gasping for breath, searching for his lips again, “you have to stop or I’m going to fuck you right here.” 

 

Her eyes widened, fingertips reaching out for anything she would recognise, finding only fur, and solid body, running across a medallion, two horned hanging under his mantle. Surely not.

 

“Shaxx.” She whispered against his lips, feeling them turn up in a smile before she sought to squash it with another angry kiss, snarling at him as she pushed him against the bar. “You fucking tease, you knew I’d be here.”

 

There was a hearty laugh from the Titan, vibrating through her whole body and setting her nerves on fire. 

 

“And you fell right into it, we’re even now Moss, one-one,” with that he sunk back into her kiss, then left her cold, vanishing for her grasp and leaving her soaking and desperate.  


	3. Round 3 - Crimson Hearts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Crimson days are back in a few days, and in case anybody hasn’t seen Bungies tweet with the most gorgeous quite from Shaxx, then I recommend you check it out.
> 
> “Love beckons. And when love beckons, who among us can say no?”
> 
> I guess our favourite big Titan is a romantic after all.

The aftermath of the party was always wild, fireteams from all walks being asked to come in and help with the clean up. Minus the vanguard and a few higher ups of course. Moss was glad about that though, her mind spinning from the memories of the previous night. Shaxx was nowhere to be found, undoubtedly excuse from cleaning duty to ensure the crucible ran for the non party goers. Shaking her ringing head, she went back to it, picking up a few discarded bottles that the frames had either missed or not gotten to yet. There was only so much the robots could do, and the place was reasonably clean as it was. Thank the traveller for that. Dinky had stubbornly refused to heal her of her headache, claiming it was her own fault she wanted to drink her own body weight in alcohol. Even for a guardian it was… painful. 

 

Cleaning up took forever it seemed, her head pounding even more as she dragged her weary carcass back to her apartment, passing by the vanguard on the way to speak briefly with Ikora, who looked fresher than the green fields outside the city. Her dark eyes barely rising from her data pad to acknowledge Moss entering the room. 

 

“You look tired,” the older guardian noted, placing the pad down and crossing her arms. Moss gulped, she and the vanguard usually got on pretty well, but her stance today spoke trouble. 

 

“Yeah, Dink is letting me suffer todayy apparently.” At his name, the little ghost popped out and gave her a tiny shock that made her jump and rub her arm, “And apparently contributing too.”   
  
“We just wanted to say well done, that’s all.”    
  
“Well done? For what?”   
  
“For beating the crucible himself one on one of course,” Ikoras smile reached her eyes this time, and Moss had a feeling there was joke somewhere that she was the butt of.   
  
“In all due respect, Ikora, Shaxx went easy on me, he’d have had me on my ass if he had been doing his best.”   
  
“And I’m sure Lord Shaxx would have enjoyed that very much.” Yep, definitely the butt of the joke. Rolling her eyes at the Vanguard, moss grinned at her friend. News sure travelled fast around here, probably helped along by a certain hunter exo. No matter, with the Crimson Days fast coming, she couldn’t afford to fall out with her favourite partner, although she could give him a few new dents. Shaking her head and muttering a quick goodbye to the other warlock -who was grinning from ear to ear - she left, seeking some alternative company and desperately trying to avoid Cayde before he came to work. Zavala was wisely hidden behind his notes, his shoulders quaking with unshed laughter. Briefly he raised his eye to meet hers, the eerie blue meeting luminous green. For a moment, there was silent tension like an arc charge, then Zavala began to chuckle, out loud, to the shock of all those in the room. Moss rose a challenging eyebrow. Zavala kept laughing. It was not worth the effort of the argument, at least she was going to get laid, sooner or later. Speaking of which, the object of her aggressive lust would be right outside the door - had he recovered from his probably equally aggressive hangover.

Sure enough, there he was, bent over beside Arcite, talking in a low hushed voice but Moss could hear the excitement in his tone, in the way the energy poured off him. Standing for just a moment to appreciate the way certain muscles flexed as he bent over, she stifled the urge to give a solid slap to his backside, she’d probably break her wrist. A surge of lust ran through her as he straightened and stretched, those fine muscles bunching and tensing under his armour. Arcite hummed as he jotted down notes and then looked to her, unsurprised to see the warlock standing there. Shaxx knew she was there, of course he did, yet he continued to perform for her, stretching an arm across his chest and holding it, flexing the masses of shoulders.

 

“Better watch there, handsome, you’ll get a crick in your neck.” Approaching him from behind, she gave an appreciative pat on the ass and leaned against his desk, smiling at Arcite standing tall next to them. The frame nodded his head and sauntered off to the side, clicking away on a data pad. Shaxx folded his arms and leaned next to her, a comfortable silence falling over them. The thoughts and feelings of the previous night weighed on them both, though Moss wasn’t sure he was feeling the same spine-tingling pleasure as she was, the same electricity in her veins where she could feel the heat of him pressing against her. There was still no words, just that heavy warmth, then, slowly, she reached for him. Nervous at first, her fingers travelled down his arm, across fabric and the armour then down to his gloves. It took him a second to unfold his arms and clasp her hand, engulfing it with his own. No more was the raging lust burning through her, but rather the sweet warmth that also burned through her cheeks with a deep purple blush. 

It only lasted a moment before they flew apart at the sound of Cayde traipsing down the corridor, a cocky swagger in his step as he winked one bright blue eye and sauntered into the Vanguard hall. There was a moment of staring at each other, then the two laughed, separating slightly to look less conspicuous.

 

“Last night was great,” Moss smirked, looking up to the Titan, “Same next time?”

 

There was a deep, low chuckle from Shaxx as looked down at her, “Of course, any time, though I think we’re even just now, so you’ll have to make it good.”

 

Tutting at him, she moved away before she put her foot in it, or potentially just molested him in front of all the Vanguard. Was fraternising allowed? Particularly with higher members of the guardians that people looked up to. What would the new guardians say if they saw the crucible himself bending her ov… Nope. No more of that. Taking a deep breath and trying to covering the blush that was forming on her face, she walked off, throwing an extra sway in her step for good measure.

 

“See you in the crucible? Tonight?” 

 

“Absolutely, I look forward to it.”

 

****

 

Ikora had run her hard on patrols that day, all across the cosmodrome, she walked, taking down Fallen as they appeared. Now back at the tower, sweat had coated her, sticking her hair to her skin, and tickling her upper lip. Armour clung to her in ways that rubbed where it touched, the thick protective under layers burning the inside of her thighs and arms. Leaning over the balcony of the tower, she watched out over the lands, the stars twinkling above her. From the mountains blew a cold chill, threatening to freeze overnight, but the rabble of the tower behind her brought warmth. Serenity overrode her worries as she watched the clouds drift through the dark sky, tinted ever so slightly with the last rays of sunset - or possibly the first sign of dawn. Eyes burned from the lack of sleep and the long hours and even Dinky was resting, his light low and calm. How Moss wished she was the same, having tossed and turned in her bed, unable to sleep, here she stood. Passing the time with her thoughts and dreams. Above the city, the Traveller had settled, a familiar shadow above them. 

 

Of course it did not take long for him to find her. Moss had not shown as expected or promised to the Crucible, and she had expected him to come looking. Tonight though, she wasn’t looking for a rough tease, or anything of the sort really - some company was all she wanted. Sure enough, he seemed to read her mind, leaning next to her. 

 

“It’s a beautiful night,” She said, glancing to him, “How has the crucible been treating you, oh Lord Shaxx?” 

 

“As exciting as always Moss, too many new guardians who don’t know the right end of the gun to shoot from.”

 

She laughed at him, a full bodied laugh that started him off as well. Exhaustion made it far funnier than it was as she began whooping, leaning heavily on the bars at the edge of the towers main courtyard area. After what seemed like hours, she pulled herself together, tears trailing her cheeks, eyes on fire. 

 

“Takes me back to when I first came back,” sobering up fairly quickly, she looked to the Titan, who was focussed entirely on her, “I woke up in a car in the cosmodrome, next to old bones. I hope it was quick for them, and my ghost was there in my face, saying ‘eyes up guardian’, I’ve never been so damned shocked, I mean I was dead for god knows how long. I even had purple skin, what the hell is that about.” 

 

“I remember you sauntering into the tower, raggedy and yet, so full of light and self-confidence. You looked me up and down, crooked an eyebrow then kept walking.” Shaxx laughed, giving her a similar gesture in return, “I half wonder if you even knew your ass was burned bare.”

 

Blushing brightly, Moss buried her face in her hands, shaking her head. “Of course you remember that.”

 

“How could I not?!” Moving closer to her, his hands clasped round her waist, “It was a pleasant sight and brightened my lacklustre day.”

 

“Glad it was good for someone, I was barely holding myself together.”

 

Again, they shared a quiet chuckle. A moment of silence passed between them, breath fogging the cold night air as the first rays of the sunrise peaked. Shaxx sighed, his hands moving to his helmet, unclamping the latches on the way up and sliding it off over his head. Moss watched like a hawk, having never seen his face before, nor believing any of the stories about him. A single bright orange pupil matched her gaze, the other eye dulled by the damage, framed by the scars down the side of his face. Nothing detracted from his stunningly handsome looks though, and for a moment, she was shell-shocked. His skin… pale blue, his eyes stark against it and the mystical swirling just under his skin. 

 

“I didn’t expect you to be like me,” raising a hand, she let her fingers trace across his damaged cheek, feeling the slightly smoother, raised edges of the scars long healed, silvered by age and healing. Heart beating faster, she felt him lean into her touch, nuzzling against her hand and laying gentle kisses against her wrist. There was a brush of stubble that she hadn’t felt at the party, or maybe just hadn’t noticed. Pushing him softly against the barrier, and looping her arms around his neck, she rose up on her tiptoes to reach his lips. 

 

There was no resistance as he wrapped himself around her and met her kiss, lips soft and tentative against her own. This was the polar opposite of the party night, there was no explosion of lust, just a sweet kiss. Her tongue sought entry and he happily obliged, deepening the kiss and moaning into her mouth. Pulling back slightly, he followed her, refusing to let her drop out that easily. Not after everything they had shared so far. The moment didn’t last long enough by far before he was simply holding her, watching the sun break the horizon and squinting as it glared straight into their eyes. Not particularly romantic, they both laughed, but romantic nonetheless. 


	4. Dance of Doubles

Crimson days hit like a truck, and suddenly the tower was a mass of love, romance and a Traveller-damned orgy. Without a doubt, it was both Moss’ favourite and most hated time of year, especially being that in her long life as a guardian she had spent most of that time alone. Aside from the occasional fling, and whatever you would call what was happening with Shaxx, she had been alone. The crimson days made her want to change that, to finally share her eternal life with someone that made it all worth it. At least for now, she could put love to the back of her mind and revel in the friendship that she shared with Cayde, her favourite Exo. At least for a few games anyway. Even her trusty vanguard friend seemed to have his eyes set on another guardian, and he seemed desperate to clamber through games and be back with them. At least she had him for a little while, blowing the competition out of the water as both warlock and hunter battled through, Cayde with his vicious golden gun, and Moss with her stormcaller, they cut through the masses with ease. But it always faded through the end of the match, Cayde losing his concentration over time, and slowly they began to tilt. It was after their first proper loss, five points behind in the round, that she finally decided to call it quits. 

 

So there Shaxx found her. Sitting precariously on the piping that ran along the low lines of the tower, her feet dangling over the drop below. Before she had been a guardian… She must have been terribly fearful of heights, her stomach turning as she looked down out onto the green fields below. Even though Dinky was there to revive her and she knew she'd be fine, that tremor of fear remained. Rain had begun maybe half an hour earlier, meaning she couldn't even stand up to get back to the safety of the walkways where the Titan stood, his arms crossed on the railing as he leaned casually over to watch her. The crucible had long since ended for the night, and Moss had vanished after promising him a quick one on one rematch. 

 

Silence held for some time as they listened to the rain pattering off their helmets, and looking out onto the fields below. Moss was the first to break the silence. 

 

“You know, when I first came here as a guardian, I was so confused, so scared that I didn't even think twice about throwing myself over the edge?” she laughed bitterly, “would you believe how angry I was when the damn ghost brought me back? I let that anger push me forward, and damn if Cayde was the only one to see the scared pup beneath.”

 

She laughed again, a dry, unhappy sound.

 

“I hate these days, all the damn petals get in places they shouldn't, and everybody is hanging all over each other.”

 

“You're just jealous Cayde's got someone.”

 

His bluntness shocked her, but it was a needed shock nonetheless. Looking up to the Titan, she grinned under her helmet, hardly expecting him to see it, or the tear stained cheeks. Again she laughed, turning back to the hills. 

 

“Yeah, I guess I am.”

 

“Come on Moss, cheer up, I'll find you a partner for the doubles for tomorrow, one that you'll love!” Reaching out to herpartner that’ll beat even the hunter vanguard!”

 

Now that was something that both piqued her interest and perked her spirits, of Shaxx was willing to go far enough to cheer her up as to offer her a partner. As long as it was someone semi-decent that she could once more go on her ass whooping spree with. Not another warlock hopefully, they tended to be hot headed and not great at playing together. Either way, he was going to brighten her day by giving her a partner and Moss hoped that he’d watched enough of her plays to match her with someone who could compliment her. Maybe even… nah, he wouldn't be available during crucible hours surely. No matter, she trusted his judgement, and rose to her feet, slipping on the wet piping and catching herself on the wall. Trembling with nerves, she kicked off, her light igniting and boosting her up and sending her straight into the Titans waiting arms. Her helmet transmatted off as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

 

“Any plans for the night, almighty Lord of the crucible?” Pressing a kiss against the side of his helmet, she slid down his body until her feet hit the floor and it dawned on her just how enormous he was against her, at least a foot taller and wide enough to make even her toned muscle look like nothing against him. Trying to reach her arms around him, she managed to grab a handful of his solid ass before he laughed and swatted her off. 

 

“Nothing just now, star of my doubles, would you like me too?”

 

“Well I know this sweet little pasta place that transmats to my apartment if you’d…”

 

****

 

An hour later saw them in Moss’ apartment, a bowl in front of each of them, stripped down to their base suits, Shaxx in his navy blue with black padding, and Moss in her deep purple with the black lining. Sitting side by side on the couch, they watched crucible replays on her big screen whilst Shaxx debated the finer points of Titans, arguing half heartedly and wildly gesturing his arms as she jabbed back at him with the far better points of warlocks. Of course Titans were stronger, bigger (in every way) and had the stamina to go for days, and Moss swore she would test that at some point, but warlocks definitely had a far better grasp of their powers and how to press all the buttons. Flaring her light ever so slightly, she dance her arc energy across his arm, raising the goose flesh across his skin and sending shivers through him. 

With a full bowl of spaghetti they settled back down, a more amicable distance between them and as Moss ate through her dinner, she crept closer to the massive body next to her, his arms stretched across the back of her couch, and tucked herself into his side, curling right into him and resting her head on his shoulder. It only took a minute of insistent snuggling before he semi-hugged her, pulling her tighter towards him with one eyebrow raised and a glowing orange eye watching her. Grinning up at him, she leaned in and pecked his cheek 

 

“So about this partner for crucible?” She prodded, giving him a gentle nudge in the ribcage with a padded elbow. Curious though she was, she was also concerned for his choice, not that she thought he would compromise her at all! But still, not exactly what she needed with Cayde giving up on her now. 

 

“You’ll must have to find that out tomorrow won’t you? Don’t you trust me?” He raised an eyebrow at her, a semi hurt look on his face as he stared her down. Some habits never die, and the crucible handler was unlikely to ever be a submissive man. Unfortunately for him, Moss wouldn’t be rolling over either.

 

“Oh I don’t know, I mean it could be Arcite for all I know.”

 

That got a smile from him, “Arcite is twice the fighter Cayde could ever be, he’s my right hand… erm… Frame for a reason.”

 

“Sure it isn’t just the hero worship?” Laughing at his feigned scowl, she poked him in the ribs again, “I’m surprised he hasn’t snapped one of his own horns to be just like you.”

 

Shaxx turned away from her, letting out a loud  _ humph _ and folding his arms, only giving away his real mood as she cuddled back in, grinning up at him. 

 

“You’ll find out tomorrow anyway,” he affirmed again, unlocking his arms to pull her in tight, “I have to go, plenty to do and tomorrow to prepare for.”

 

Giving her one last lingering kiss, both sweet and gentle, so not to spark her boiling lust for him, he stretched and collected his armour. Precise practised hands had it back on in minutes, stopping again to give her another short kiss before his helmet went on and he snuck out the door onto the quiet streets and back to his own apartment high in the tower with the rest of the Vanguard and higher ups. With luck Zavala would be sound asleep and not hear him coming in the door, the rumors between them were bad enough already, and Moss had already scorched a few new guardians for making insinuations. If anyone was going to make the rumours on the size of the Titans junk. It was gonna be her. 

 

Curling back up in the couch, she lounged over where Shaxx had been sitting, taking in the scent of heavy ammo and polish. Funny how no matter what, his armour was always sparkling. 

 

*****

  
  


Morning brought sunlight streaming through the window, straight into Moss’ eyes. Having slept on the couch all night, she was pleasantly surprised how good her sleep had been, and, stretching like a cat across the sofa, she rose to challenge the day ahead, her curiosity overwhelming her want to lie in. Her armour had been polished to a fine sheen, the deep purple metal shimmering as the rays caught the dents and scratches across it. It was her old faithful, nothing overly exotic, but very recognisable, even in the heat of battle. Maybe one day she would upgrade. But that wouldn't be any time soon.

 

Heat scorched the tower as the first signs of spring rose through the air, the flowers around the edgings blooming in vast colourful arrays, and the sun splitting the sky with only a dusting of light fluffy clouds. It was a hell of a day to be in battle. Shaxx met her at his office and stand, hands on his hips as he looked down at her. 

 

“Welcome guardian. Ready to go?”

 

“As always, big guy.”

 

In a matter of moments, she felt herself transmat to the field, standing amidst the same rubble she had in her one on one with Shaxx. The weight of Vigilance Wing was familiar and beautiful in her hands, ready to go. Next to her transmatted her partner, a heavy Titan in basic gear, shaded black. They nodded their head, ambiguous armour giving nothing away. 

 

“Eyes up Guardian, we got this,” Moss smiled at the newcomer, hoping for a reply, anything, but there was nothing. Maybe they still signed? She signed out to them, and they politely signed back ‘Titan’ and nothing more. Guess that was all she was getting. 

 

The match went beautifully, her partner matching her every move, their auto rifle whirring up and taking down opponents with ease. When fiery wings burst from her back and her phantom flaming sword appeared in her hands, they took a step back, with a massive thumbs up. Once she was done raining hellish fire down upon their opponents, she heard the telltale ringing as they also lit up, a heavy hammer in their hands, ready to continue the reign of fire. By the time the 2.30 mark was rung, they were simply playing with their opponents. 

 

When her partner whipped out a sword however, she knew right away. Nobody else used a Raze-Lighter quite like that. Nobody except Lord Shaxx himself. 

 

Moss stood back and watch as he clear cut the other guardian in half, their ghost shooting off in horror as the blood sprayed. Gory, but it definitely turned her on to watch him wield the sword like that, proving he was still as deadly as ever, even through his forced semi-retirement handling the crucible. Her distraction cost her as bullets cut the air and hit her square through the stomach, not enough to kill but damn that smarted. After all the bullets and stabs, and goddamn minotaur stomping her ass to the dirt, it just never got any easier. 

 

Dinky was out quicker than expected, healing her up enough to chuck a grenade back over the wall she had dropped behind. Feeling a strong hand on her shoulder, she turned, her partner - Shaxx, of course - was crouched down with her, waiting for the final countdown to pass and they had won. Of course they had won, would the crucible himself truly lose at his own game. 

 

Just like that, their enemies were transmatted off the map, leaving them behind and before she even knew what was happening, she had Shaxx against their cover, pulling her helmet off and thankful that his was gone now too. Pulling him down by the neck of his armour into a fiery kiss. Tongues intertwined as she pressed him against the rubble, his hands coming to rest on her ass and grinding her against him, just wishing for a moment that there wasn't  a heavy piece of crotch armour in the road. Damn mood killer. She let her hands roam across the unarmoured areas, feeling his corded muscles tense as she ground back against him - a groan escaping him as he fought to control himself. How easy it would to just transmat their armour off and let him have his way with her.

 

“How did you guess?” he asked, his voice husky and heavy with want.. 

 

“It's the sword. I've never seen anyone swing a sword quite like you in the old clips of Twilight Gap.”

 

Laughing, he enveloped her with a tight hug, planting a kiss on her head amidst the ginger spikes. 

“You watched those, huh?”

 

“Well how else would I swoon over my favourite Titan when I'm on long patrols?”

 

Both laughed that time, Moss turning her blushing cheeks away, smiling the whole time. Shaxx had the most gorgeous lopsided smile, the other side bisected by a long silvered scar down his cheek, the same he'd undoubtedly lost his vision to. Moss wondered quietly what it could have been but was too shy to ask him, instead, tugging the hair at the nape of his neck to bring him back to her lips. Sweet kisses took over once more, only a chaste touching of lips, but filled with affection and feelings that Moss didn’t want to yet admit too. It was all very quick and sudden and troubled her beyond her reach before she could get it under control. 

 

“Come, Arcite can only hold the cameras off so long before someone suspects something,” Shaxx stretched upwards, his helmet transmatting back on her with a glittering of light. “At least not any more than Cayde already does.”

 

“Speaking of which,” Moss looked off into the distance as her own helmet came on and her ghost appeared, whispering in her ear, “Ikora calls.”

 

A while later saw her on her ship, heading off to patrol. Her ghost dinged and brought up the image that had been sent, expecting to see a map from Ikora, or even Cayde’s antics hanging off parts of the tower he shouldn’t (or sometimes pictures of Zavala’s face with moustaches drawn on) but no. What she seen was not what she expected at all, and she choked on air, blinking twice as she tilted her head to make out the picture. Dinky pinged, taking control of the ship as it veered sideways and narrowly dodged another coming the other way.

 

There was Shaxx, stripped down, his stunning chest bared, marred by scars and heavily damaged, but turned her on regardless. His pecs were solid against the muscles of his rib cage, flowing down to a stomach muscles that would make Atlas swoon. Dropping lower… gulping, Moss let her eyes wander, huffing at the picture stopping just below the V and trail of dark hair leading downwards, so temptingly close but so far, his hand out of view as well, but dangerously close to where she would love to see. He was winking, his one good eye bright in the picture, the orange stark against the deep colour of his face and the dark mop of hair. Another ping followed with a message.

 

“You can see the rest when you come home safe.”

 

Moss didn’t stop smiling the whole journey.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m loving writing this, although it makes me sad that I’m logging on to Destiny and Moss isn’t romancing Shaxx like this... damn, I’ve been spoiled by games with relationships (Looking at you ME and DA) so I can’t see past them now!
> 
> I’m also going to be putting some plot here, I never meant to, it was supposed to be sexy and hot but instead I’m cute af and romantic plot is creeping in. Sorry
> 
> In case you didn’t guess, we’re heading into the Destiny 2 timeline. It’s going downhill here into the darkness before it brightens up again!


End file.
